THE MODERATOR APPLICATIONS!
Okay People, here is your chance to vote for your new mods, you can simply say "yes" or "no" to each mod in the Poll at the bottom!
IMPORTANT: It's come to our attention that there is some 'worry' of hurt feelings or retribution if a 'NO' vote is cast. For player privacy, only two people have access to this information and the information will be kept private and only discussed if there is a dispute or question of votes. Once voting is completed, the final results will stay online, but this poll will be removed to avoid disrupting player privacy.
Thanks!
Applicant One - Julia
Name: Julia Gulia
LJ Username: ARareJul
Preferred Duties: anything. of course quidditch but i am up for anything.
Roleplaying Experience: 4 years in a chat based rp on aol and nearly 2 years here.
How much time can you devote to NP: at least 7 hours a week but usually more.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? It depends. I'm good with complicated things and i like lists and order. Quidditch is kind of evidence of that.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? I could never do plots by myself. I like doing them? But I tend to need the influence of other people to really come up with something good.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? i'm a big advocate of players having more say in everything and i'd really love for some story arcs but i know how hard it is..but i'd still love to try.
What do they want to keep the same at Now Playing? mostly everything? i think that NP is amazing overall and i can't think of anything off hand that is bad about it.
Why do you want the job? I like helping. I like feeling productive. It's nice to think that you're making the game better for people.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? I'd talk immediately with the mods that are online and one of us would ask the players involved in the plot to stop until all the mods can decide how to deal with the situation.
Former mods:
How long have you been a mod? umm.. probably 6 months?
How long have you spent on hiatus? Why? I just recently went on my first mod hiatus for a month because i was sick and in canada.
Applicant Two - Crystal
Name: Crystal
LJ Username: hope99_31516
Preferred Duties: Keeping lists up-to-date.
Roleplaying Experience: Now Playing was my first RP. I've been playing here for well over a year and a half. (Something like 20 months.)
How much time can you devote to NP: I can devote quite a bit of time to NP. I'm a stay at home mom who part times as a substitute teacher. My mother/wifely duties would get in the way more than anything else but I spend quite a bit of time on the internet already (several, several hours a day) it would be simple to devote some of that time to Now Playing.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? Lists. I'm good with lists. I am quite the list maker in my every day life. When I ran a guild on Neopets (it's a lot like a community) I was rather anal about my lists. As a matter of fact, I could look back now (it's been over four years) and tell you exactly when each member joined the guild.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Plots. I'm afraid my imagination isn't as creative as I'd like it to be.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? I want to help bring in new members and work to make sure that everyone feels welcome.
What do they want to keep the same at Now Playing? I like Now Playing. It's difficult to list the things I want to keep the same since, in essence, I don't want to change anything major.
Why do you want the job? I want to help Now Playing. I've absolutely adored the game, the characters and the people for close to two years now. I think that it's time I gave back to the community.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react?
First, I would consult the other mods. If it was decided that I needed to approach the player, I would do it in a respectful, professional manner. You do not have to be rude to get your point across. You attract more flies with honey than vinegar.
Applicant Three - Lena
Name: Lena
LJ Username: lenabee
Preferred Duties: I'm happy with just about anything, but I think my strengths lie in my organizational skills... setting up schedules and lists, maintaining the website, coordinating the Daily Prophet, etc. Though I believe that the DP work needs to be shared with whoever is running plots in order to make sure the appropriate news items make it in.
Roleplaying Experience: NP was my first roleplay and I joined at it's inception two years ago. Since then, I've been involved in five other RPGs, three of which I am still an active part.
How much time can you devote to NP: 10-15 hours a week, at least. I'd be doing most of my work on my days off from my real job, which vary from week to week, but I generally have an hour or two even on the days I do work, too.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? As stated above, my strengths are in writing and organization, so I think I would do best in areas involving maintaining lists and rules/infos, updating the website, managing or co-managing the DP, etc.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Plots. While I can brainstorm on existing things, I don't think I'm great at coming up with new and exciting plots or figuring out the best ways to execute them.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? Not a lot, actually. I think that some of the rules could be tweaked a bit and that our rules need to be enforced fairly, but flexibly, but there isn't a lot I would change about the game, itself. I think that the activity requirements are a bit strict and I would support loosening those a little bit. I think it's important to have some sort of activity requirement there, because of the caps in place, but I think maybe pushing it back to once every 2-3 months and reviewing hiatus rules in general.
On the subject of caps, too, aside from the number of students allowed per player and per year/house, I would really support judging apps on a case by case basis. I'd like for NP to reflect real life demographics, but I'd also hate to deny a really great character or drive away a potentially great member of the community just because of a strict, inflexible application of a cap.
I'd like to see, also, a better system for holding mods accountable. Regular status posts to Chatter advising the community of what's going on would help with that, I think, and also help to keep members informed of what IS going on in the community.
What do you want to keep the same at Now Playing?
I love that members can have feedback on new apps, but that comments are screened so they can be presented all at once. I also like the current week change schedule and the way the game is run in general. Basically, everything I didn't mention above? Should stay the same.
Why do you want the job? Because I love NP. We may have had a rocky relationship in the past year, but I still love it and I still believe it can be an amazing place. Because I miss being a mod and working for NP and I frequently regret my earlier decision to step down. I'd like another chance to be involved in making our community a better place to play in.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? My first step would be to investigate... find out if they DID get permission, because just because it didn't go through Plot Permissions or get posted in officials doesn't mean they didn't talk to a mod. If that was the case, I would speak to that mod about posting such things to Officials in the future, because that's the kind of miscommunication that shouldn't be happening amongst the mods.
Depending on the nature of the thread, I'd either freeze or screen it or just speak to the player. If it was a plot that WOULD have been approved, I'd let the thread stand (after discussing and confirming with the other mods) and give the player a light "warning" asking them to run those kind of things through a mod BEFORE posting next time.
It really does depend on the nature of the thread, because we're not Nazis here. We're here to have fun, more than anything, and while we do need rules and need to enforce the rules to keep things running smoothly, we don't want to become so strict and inflexible that people become afraid to post anything without permission or that people are no longer having fun. Part of being a good mod, I think, is finding the right balance between enforcing the rules and making sure everyone is having a good time.
Applicant Four - Perrie
Name: Perrie
LJ Username: perrie
Preferred Duties: I don't mind particuarly what I do as long as it gets shared equally. I'm not half bad at list stuff, or updating whatever needs to be updated, and I'm reasonably diplomatic enough to be good at applications too.
Roleplaying Experience: Too much. Been RPing since I was 13 in varied games, including modding my own when I was 15 or so, and my character was on Platform 9 3/4 when NP very first started. I've been writing on and off since I was little, and am always involved in one way or other with ongoing RPs.
How much time can you devote to NP: Not as much as some, more than others. I can try my best to mod as much as I can, but I can't be there 24/7. I certainly can't be around during August due to work commitments, but before and after I will be able to put modding effort in most days of the week to keep things updated.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? A diplomatic go-between, or in a position with lots of short jobs rather than one tedious one that'll take a long period of time. I work in theatre, so I'm very good at multitasking and having to handle lots of people at once. I can keep a cool head and don't flare up much, and I think people respect that.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Anything to do with counting, points or numbers. I can't math.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? To make the game more grown up, as it were. Although it suits younger and more inexperienced players very well, I think the older ones feel stifled, and not able to necessarily play their characters or storylines in the way they see fit.
What do you want to keep the same at Now Playing? The structure of the game makes things really easy to work with, and it's flexible enough to introduce new things or take out old ideas that just aren't working any well.
Why do you want the job? Well, I figure since I've been considering the idea for a while, and am technically in a quiet period at the moment, applying to be a mod is the least I can do to fill the hours. Plus, everyone seems to like me, and generally I just enjoy having my voice heard above the crowd.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? Good for them! I'd nudge the other mods to make sure they know about it, keep an eye on it and see how it runs, but as long as it isn't heading towards Voldemorts Second Coming or something equally destructive then I'd just leave it alone. I don't think every bit of plot needs permission - more often than not it just creates friction and more work for the mods anyway. Generally if you just chill out and approach things with a cool head, it goes a lot smoother than if you storm in there and try and fix what wasn't broken in the first place.
Applicant Five - Lacey
Name: Lacey
LJ Username: orangewinters
Preferred Duties: Okay, I'm pretty much up for anything but particularly I'd love to help out with the DP (woo, articles!), plot stuff or at least helping to brainstorm and driving it with articles. I'm all for making promotional posts or keeping people up on what's going on. Any tagging or activity tracking I'm up for too. Detail oriented? Yeah. That's me.
Roleplaying Experience: Nearly two solid years here!
How much time can you devote to NP: Aside from my 40hrs rl work, I'm pretty much always online (in case you hadn't noticed). I can probably promise at least an hour a night to be doing whatever might need doing and of course, I can always sit down and put in serious work on the weekends for official business to get articles written or whatever.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? Like I said above, I'm very detail oriented so the less fun tasks like tagging and keeping track of stuff plays pretty well to my strengths. I'd love to be helpful with what I see as the bigger problems like plot though. And you know you want to hear more from Henrald Badcocke, right?
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Maintaining any of the pages probably isn't my thing. Certainly not coding or layouts. *leaves that to the experts*
What do you want to change about Now Playing? I think we have a great comm and great people over all. Things are moving in good directions as far as getting the comm organized and I'm in awe of all the work past mods have put in. In my opinion, things need to be settled and streamlined. The list of mod activities is pretty long, but I think a lot of it could be simplified if we were able to sit down and really get a plot worked out and rolling instead of it being a constant problem that has to slow everyone involved up. The same goes for caps and all of our organizational measures but unless I'm mistaken a lot of that is very close to being settled. Following through with plot points, driving the story line with articles that allow characters to know what's going on and to act accordingly could take a lot of weight off the mods as far as having to drag people along and hand hold to get plot moving, only to have it be done and dead a few weeks later.
What do they want to keep the same at Now Playing? The lists and info posts and just the sheer amount of cataloged information we have is awesome. So many people have put so much work into organizing the comm and trying to make it easy to find helpful information, for current and new players.
Why do you want the job? I've had so much fun here in the last two years, I can't imagine what things would have been like if I'd never joined. I love that the comm has made it this far and I want it to keep getting better. We've had setbacks but I really want to see NP keep pulling through and improving. It would be easier to walk away but I love it here too much not to want to stay and really help.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? First I'd track down the player and remind them that they need to comment to plot permissions before starting things that have effects beyond their character. I'd explain, if necessary, why this particular plot might need okaying and I'd send them to the permissions post. Ideally I'd get them to hold off with what they were doing, post, and then (assuming there were no problems) I could get it approved fairly quickly and things could move on with as little interruption as possible. If the plot was problematic and/or the player refused to go through the process, I would have to tell them that they had to stop the thread until the mods had a chance to go over how to handle the situation. From there we (the mods) would have to discuss IG consequences such as involving a professor or Dumbles to bring things back into acceptable lines and warnings or consequences for the player would be decided on.
Applicant Six - Judi (Jewel)
Name: Judi
LJ Username: 1deadheart
Preferred Duties: Contests, website, information, lists and plots.
Roleplaying Experience: uhhh, now?... 12 years. online I started at WBS, moved to IMC, continued on at ER, I was on mod teams on WBS, I organized the fantasy realms at the start of IMC, and on ER I was a SysOps, working on site level matters, I later created my own site an ran that for a while before time constraints and server issues forced it down.
How much time can you devote to NP: To Mod duties, I would say at most about 7 hours a week.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? I'm strongest in things such as contests, website, information, and other background duties that require organization.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Character Apps. I don't like doing them. I actually have a hard time telling someone there is something wrong with their character. I don't want to appear mean and I often look for compromises/concessions because I know that people get attached to their characters. they've created them and telling them that their character is bad or there is something wrong makes me feel bad because I know it's telling them that they didn't do a good job. I know I would be fair and try to be polite, but I also know I'd get frustrated and stressed out having to do it because I don't want to be mean, but sometimes I can't think of a nice way to tell someone there's a problem with their character.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? A lot of things actually. mostly things I have always promoted and advocated amongst modship.
First, I'd want to change the rules. A lot of NP is very constrictive, I want players to have more freedoms in game, yes, they have to keep their characters from being UBER powerful, and yes, god-moding is still a no-no, but a lot of the rules are just constrictive, I don't agree with activity requirements, after all, sometimes you're not in the mood to play a particular character, or if the game isn't interesting at the moment you don't want to play. It feels like work, required work to at least play once a month, it makes me feel like there is an obligation on something that should be fun and come naturally and that I'd want to do. I'd rather look at fixing what is wrong with the game to generate interest and encourage roleplay rather than make it feel like a chore.
Rules that have to do with applications would be nice to change, I like that more opinions get to be heard, but another community has it where players can say "yes" or "no" to a character directly in the application with things that are questionable. Even if Mods don't agree, it's a community decision, not just up to mods, or a single mod. I'd like to try that at NP.
In the end we have so many rules, I'd like to trim them down into something more comprehensible, I'd like to give more freedom to players and have more 'common sense' understandings, after all we're all adults or mature, we should be able to know what does and doesn't fly.
Second, I'd want more feedback from the community, we should be having weekly posts with updates on what's going on gamewise and what mods are up to as well as anything that players want to discuss from the game, to rules etc, publically, not just screened comments in 'contact the mods', which is more for issues, if one person has an issue that is community related (and not related to themselves and is personal) then maybe a community discussion would be better than just mods talking amongst themselves. Open dialog is something I have wanted and hope will have in the future.
Third, clear concise ways for members of the community to ask for inquests into mod behavior, open and honest lines of communications during these processes, and documented information about incidents with details and links to all pertainent information for future reference so that issues can be completely dealt with without requirement to rehash it. More to the point, if there is an issue, there should be documentation on how it was resolved, other than "it was looked into and everything is okay now" without any allowance for finding out the resolution and details that allowed for that resolution. Also, an established method for players to call for a vote of no confidance if they feel a mod or mods as a whole are not doing their jobs properly.
These are things I'd want to change, things I've wanted to have changed, encouraged and looked at for a long time. I can't say if I'm re-elected this will get done, because after all, it's something that a majority of mods want and will encourage and work towards, but these are the things I will continue to advocate, encourage and hopefully work towards.
Also, as a note I'd want to rework the storyline, I had already started that by making the Minister of Magic evil, but I would be interested in giving the game a much darker undertone. I'd want the good guys to be completely struggling, I'd want "evil" to have already won and the atmosphere is one of 'hopelessness' and 'fear', I'd want to make the good guys feel outnumbered, outdone, and the ones struggling, I'd like for Voldemort (OR actually a successor maybe?) to actually be in charge and oppressing the country. No evil hiding in the shadows, but the good guys doing that. like in comics Age of Apocalypse, the good guys have been beaten down completely and are trying to get themselves together to unite against the evil but have to deal with betrayls, good groups are untrusting of each other, each having their own methods and not agreeing with others.
What do you want to keep the same at Now Playing? Everything I didn't mention! *laughs* which is a lot actually.
Why do you want the job? I still like NP. I still want to do right by it's players, yes, I'm not always easy to get along with, and yes, I'm a bitch. I can tell you that's changed a lot. I still have a lot to offer NP and want to continue to offer it, I enjoy working for this community and making it something fun. Plus, I would miss organizing and running contests such as Merlin Medals and Summer Frenzy.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? How I always do, I usually IM other mods, discuss it with them, I'll also freeze the thread if need be (if it's harsh enough), I tend to call it to attention of others because not everything is always posted to officials sometimes things are approved/spoken about through IM's and it's not known. If it's something believable the players are made aware that their actions can have consequences, and sometimes they will face them IG. if it's something not believable and sits outside the genre then it's brought to officials and discussed and decided on. I don't always agree with the decisions, but I abide by them. I do believe majority rules. If it conflicts with another plot, then I tend to advocate against allowing it in favour of the approved plot.
Former mods:
How long have you been a mod? Quite a bit of time I realised, since end of October/beginning of November of 2005.
How long have you spent on hiatus? Why? I've been on Hiatus a couple of times, usually due to vacations (I took off a month and a bit when I went to Germany December to January) and because of new work. It's hard to count exactly how much time I have been on hiatus, but it usually revolved around being out of country to changing jobs and having to go through training and a change of hours and work loads.
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POLL HAS BEEN REMOVED AS VOTING IS CLOSED. RESULTS ARE AS FOLLOWS:
JULIA - 19 YES
CRYSTAL - 18 YES
LENA - 9 YES
PERRIE - 17 YES
LACEY - 20 YES
JUDI - 20 YES
*Results were calculated by counting the votes made by Now Playing Members. 1 yes vote by default was removed as NPC Journal np_dumbledore made it. Results have been recorded.
IMPORTANT: It's come to our attention that there is some 'worry' of hurt feelings or retribution if a 'NO' vote is cast. For player privacy, only two people have access to this information and the information will be kept private and only discussed if there is a dispute or question of votes. Once voting is completed, the final results will stay online, but this poll will be removed to avoid disrupting player privacy.
Thanks!
Applicant One - Julia
Name: Julia Gulia
LJ Username: ARareJul
Preferred Duties: anything. of course quidditch but i am up for anything.
Roleplaying Experience: 4 years in a chat based rp on aol and nearly 2 years here.
How much time can you devote to NP: at least 7 hours a week but usually more.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? It depends. I'm good with complicated things and i like lists and order. Quidditch is kind of evidence of that.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? I could never do plots by myself. I like doing them? But I tend to need the influence of other people to really come up with something good.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? i'm a big advocate of players having more say in everything and i'd really love for some story arcs but i know how hard it is..but i'd still love to try.
What do they want to keep the same at Now Playing? mostly everything? i think that NP is amazing overall and i can't think of anything off hand that is bad about it.
Why do you want the job? I like helping. I like feeling productive. It's nice to think that you're making the game better for people.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? I'd talk immediately with the mods that are online and one of us would ask the players involved in the plot to stop until all the mods can decide how to deal with the situation.
Former mods:
How long have you been a mod? umm.. probably 6 months?
How long have you spent on hiatus? Why? I just recently went on my first mod hiatus for a month because i was sick and in canada.
Applicant Two - Crystal
Name: Crystal
LJ Username: hope99_31516
Preferred Duties: Keeping lists up-to-date.
Roleplaying Experience: Now Playing was my first RP. I've been playing here for well over a year and a half. (Something like 20 months.)
How much time can you devote to NP: I can devote quite a bit of time to NP. I'm a stay at home mom who part times as a substitute teacher. My mother/wifely duties would get in the way more than anything else but I spend quite a bit of time on the internet already (several, several hours a day) it would be simple to devote some of that time to Now Playing.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? Lists. I'm good with lists. I am quite the list maker in my every day life. When I ran a guild on Neopets (it's a lot like a community) I was rather anal about my lists. As a matter of fact, I could look back now (it's been over four years) and tell you exactly when each member joined the guild.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Plots. I'm afraid my imagination isn't as creative as I'd like it to be.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? I want to help bring in new members and work to make sure that everyone feels welcome.
What do they want to keep the same at Now Playing? I like Now Playing. It's difficult to list the things I want to keep the same since, in essence, I don't want to change anything major.
Why do you want the job? I want to help Now Playing. I've absolutely adored the game, the characters and the people for close to two years now. I think that it's time I gave back to the community.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react?
First, I would consult the other mods. If it was decided that I needed to approach the player, I would do it in a respectful, professional manner. You do not have to be rude to get your point across. You attract more flies with honey than vinegar.
Applicant Three - Lena
Name: Lena
LJ Username: lenabee
Preferred Duties: I'm happy with just about anything, but I think my strengths lie in my organizational skills... setting up schedules and lists, maintaining the website, coordinating the Daily Prophet, etc. Though I believe that the DP work needs to be shared with whoever is running plots in order to make sure the appropriate news items make it in.
Roleplaying Experience: NP was my first roleplay and I joined at it's inception two years ago. Since then, I've been involved in five other RPGs, three of which I am still an active part.
How much time can you devote to NP: 10-15 hours a week, at least. I'd be doing most of my work on my days off from my real job, which vary from week to week, but I generally have an hour or two even on the days I do work, too.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? As stated above, my strengths are in writing and organization, so I think I would do best in areas involving maintaining lists and rules/infos, updating the website, managing or co-managing the DP, etc.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Plots. While I can brainstorm on existing things, I don't think I'm great at coming up with new and exciting plots or figuring out the best ways to execute them.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? Not a lot, actually. I think that some of the rules could be tweaked a bit and that our rules need to be enforced fairly, but flexibly, but there isn't a lot I would change about the game, itself. I think that the activity requirements are a bit strict and I would support loosening those a little bit. I think it's important to have some sort of activity requirement there, because of the caps in place, but I think maybe pushing it back to once every 2-3 months and reviewing hiatus rules in general.
On the subject of caps, too, aside from the number of students allowed per player and per year/house, I would really support judging apps on a case by case basis. I'd like for NP to reflect real life demographics, but I'd also hate to deny a really great character or drive away a potentially great member of the community just because of a strict, inflexible application of a cap.
I'd like to see, also, a better system for holding mods accountable. Regular status posts to Chatter advising the community of what's going on would help with that, I think, and also help to keep members informed of what IS going on in the community.
What do you want to keep the same at Now Playing?
I love that members can have feedback on new apps, but that comments are screened so they can be presented all at once. I also like the current week change schedule and the way the game is run in general. Basically, everything I didn't mention above? Should stay the same.
Why do you want the job? Because I love NP. We may have had a rocky relationship in the past year, but I still love it and I still believe it can be an amazing place. Because I miss being a mod and working for NP and I frequently regret my earlier decision to step down. I'd like another chance to be involved in making our community a better place to play in.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? My first step would be to investigate... find out if they DID get permission, because just because it didn't go through Plot Permissions or get posted in officials doesn't mean they didn't talk to a mod. If that was the case, I would speak to that mod about posting such things to Officials in the future, because that's the kind of miscommunication that shouldn't be happening amongst the mods.
Depending on the nature of the thread, I'd either freeze or screen it or just speak to the player. If it was a plot that WOULD have been approved, I'd let the thread stand (after discussing and confirming with the other mods) and give the player a light "warning" asking them to run those kind of things through a mod BEFORE posting next time.
It really does depend on the nature of the thread, because we're not Nazis here. We're here to have fun, more than anything, and while we do need rules and need to enforce the rules to keep things running smoothly, we don't want to become so strict and inflexible that people become afraid to post anything without permission or that people are no longer having fun. Part of being a good mod, I think, is finding the right balance between enforcing the rules and making sure everyone is having a good time.
Applicant Four - Perrie
Name: Perrie
LJ Username: perrie
Preferred Duties: I don't mind particuarly what I do as long as it gets shared equally. I'm not half bad at list stuff, or updating whatever needs to be updated, and I'm reasonably diplomatic enough to be good at applications too.
Roleplaying Experience: Too much. Been RPing since I was 13 in varied games, including modding my own when I was 15 or so, and my character was on Platform 9 3/4 when NP very first started. I've been writing on and off since I was little, and am always involved in one way or other with ongoing RPs.
How much time can you devote to NP: Not as much as some, more than others. I can try my best to mod as much as I can, but I can't be there 24/7. I certainly can't be around during August due to work commitments, but before and after I will be able to put modding effort in most days of the week to keep things updated.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? A diplomatic go-between, or in a position with lots of short jobs rather than one tedious one that'll take a long period of time. I work in theatre, so I'm very good at multitasking and having to handle lots of people at once. I can keep a cool head and don't flare up much, and I think people respect that.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Anything to do with counting, points or numbers. I can't math.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? To make the game more grown up, as it were. Although it suits younger and more inexperienced players very well, I think the older ones feel stifled, and not able to necessarily play their characters or storylines in the way they see fit.
What do you want to keep the same at Now Playing? The structure of the game makes things really easy to work with, and it's flexible enough to introduce new things or take out old ideas that just aren't working any well.
Why do you want the job? Well, I figure since I've been considering the idea for a while, and am technically in a quiet period at the moment, applying to be a mod is the least I can do to fill the hours. Plus, everyone seems to like me, and generally I just enjoy having my voice heard above the crowd.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? Good for them! I'd nudge the other mods to make sure they know about it, keep an eye on it and see how it runs, but as long as it isn't heading towards Voldemorts Second Coming or something equally destructive then I'd just leave it alone. I don't think every bit of plot needs permission - more often than not it just creates friction and more work for the mods anyway. Generally if you just chill out and approach things with a cool head, it goes a lot smoother than if you storm in there and try and fix what wasn't broken in the first place.
Applicant Five - Lacey
Name: Lacey
LJ Username: orangewinters
Preferred Duties: Okay, I'm pretty much up for anything but particularly I'd love to help out with the DP (woo, articles!), plot stuff or at least helping to brainstorm and driving it with articles. I'm all for making promotional posts or keeping people up on what's going on. Any tagging or activity tracking I'm up for too. Detail oriented? Yeah. That's me.
Roleplaying Experience: Nearly two solid years here!
How much time can you devote to NP: Aside from my 40hrs rl work, I'm pretty much always online (in case you hadn't noticed). I can probably promise at least an hour a night to be doing whatever might need doing and of course, I can always sit down and put in serious work on the weekends for official business to get articles written or whatever.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? Like I said above, I'm very detail oriented so the less fun tasks like tagging and keeping track of stuff plays pretty well to my strengths. I'd love to be helpful with what I see as the bigger problems like plot though. And you know you want to hear more from Henrald Badcocke, right?
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Maintaining any of the pages probably isn't my thing. Certainly not coding or layouts. *leaves that to the experts*
What do you want to change about Now Playing? I think we have a great comm and great people over all. Things are moving in good directions as far as getting the comm organized and I'm in awe of all the work past mods have put in. In my opinion, things need to be settled and streamlined. The list of mod activities is pretty long, but I think a lot of it could be simplified if we were able to sit down and really get a plot worked out and rolling instead of it being a constant problem that has to slow everyone involved up. The same goes for caps and all of our organizational measures but unless I'm mistaken a lot of that is very close to being settled. Following through with plot points, driving the story line with articles that allow characters to know what's going on and to act accordingly could take a lot of weight off the mods as far as having to drag people along and hand hold to get plot moving, only to have it be done and dead a few weeks later.
What do they want to keep the same at Now Playing? The lists and info posts and just the sheer amount of cataloged information we have is awesome. So many people have put so much work into organizing the comm and trying to make it easy to find helpful information, for current and new players.
Why do you want the job? I've had so much fun here in the last two years, I can't imagine what things would have been like if I'd never joined. I love that the comm has made it this far and I want it to keep getting better. We've had setbacks but I really want to see NP keep pulling through and improving. It would be easier to walk away but I love it here too much not to want to stay and really help.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? First I'd track down the player and remind them that they need to comment to plot permissions before starting things that have effects beyond their character. I'd explain, if necessary, why this particular plot might need okaying and I'd send them to the permissions post. Ideally I'd get them to hold off with what they were doing, post, and then (assuming there were no problems) I could get it approved fairly quickly and things could move on with as little interruption as possible. If the plot was problematic and/or the player refused to go through the process, I would have to tell them that they had to stop the thread until the mods had a chance to go over how to handle the situation. From there we (the mods) would have to discuss IG consequences such as involving a professor or Dumbles to bring things back into acceptable lines and warnings or consequences for the player would be decided on.
Applicant Six - Judi (Jewel)
Name: Judi
LJ Username: 1deadheart
Preferred Duties: Contests, website, information, lists and plots.
Roleplaying Experience: uhhh, now?... 12 years. online I started at WBS, moved to IMC, continued on at ER, I was on mod teams on WBS, I organized the fantasy realms at the start of IMC, and on ER I was a SysOps, working on site level matters, I later created my own site an ran that for a while before time constraints and server issues forced it down.
How much time can you devote to NP: To Mod duties, I would say at most about 7 hours a week.
What position do you think you would be strongest in? I'm strongest in things such as contests, website, information, and other background duties that require organization.
What position do you think you would be weakest in? Character Apps. I don't like doing them. I actually have a hard time telling someone there is something wrong with their character. I don't want to appear mean and I often look for compromises/concessions because I know that people get attached to their characters. they've created them and telling them that their character is bad or there is something wrong makes me feel bad because I know it's telling them that they didn't do a good job. I know I would be fair and try to be polite, but I also know I'd get frustrated and stressed out having to do it because I don't want to be mean, but sometimes I can't think of a nice way to tell someone there's a problem with their character.
What do you want to change about Now Playing? A lot of things actually. mostly things I have always promoted and advocated amongst modship.
First, I'd want to change the rules. A lot of NP is very constrictive, I want players to have more freedoms in game, yes, they have to keep their characters from being UBER powerful, and yes, god-moding is still a no-no, but a lot of the rules are just constrictive, I don't agree with activity requirements, after all, sometimes you're not in the mood to play a particular character, or if the game isn't interesting at the moment you don't want to play. It feels like work, required work to at least play once a month, it makes me feel like there is an obligation on something that should be fun and come naturally and that I'd want to do. I'd rather look at fixing what is wrong with the game to generate interest and encourage roleplay rather than make it feel like a chore.
Rules that have to do with applications would be nice to change, I like that more opinions get to be heard, but another community has it where players can say "yes" or "no" to a character directly in the application with things that are questionable. Even if Mods don't agree, it's a community decision, not just up to mods, or a single mod. I'd like to try that at NP.
In the end we have so many rules, I'd like to trim them down into something more comprehensible, I'd like to give more freedom to players and have more 'common sense' understandings, after all we're all adults or mature, we should be able to know what does and doesn't fly.
Second, I'd want more feedback from the community, we should be having weekly posts with updates on what's going on gamewise and what mods are up to as well as anything that players want to discuss from the game, to rules etc, publically, not just screened comments in 'contact the mods', which is more for issues, if one person has an issue that is community related (and not related to themselves and is personal) then maybe a community discussion would be better than just mods talking amongst themselves. Open dialog is something I have wanted and hope will have in the future.
Third, clear concise ways for members of the community to ask for inquests into mod behavior, open and honest lines of communications during these processes, and documented information about incidents with details and links to all pertainent information for future reference so that issues can be completely dealt with without requirement to rehash it. More to the point, if there is an issue, there should be documentation on how it was resolved, other than "it was looked into and everything is okay now" without any allowance for finding out the resolution and details that allowed for that resolution. Also, an established method for players to call for a vote of no confidance if they feel a mod or mods as a whole are not doing their jobs properly.
These are things I'd want to change, things I've wanted to have changed, encouraged and looked at for a long time. I can't say if I'm re-elected this will get done, because after all, it's something that a majority of mods want and will encourage and work towards, but these are the things I will continue to advocate, encourage and hopefully work towards.
Also, as a note I'd want to rework the storyline, I had already started that by making the Minister of Magic evil, but I would be interested in giving the game a much darker undertone. I'd want the good guys to be completely struggling, I'd want "evil" to have already won and the atmosphere is one of 'hopelessness' and 'fear', I'd want to make the good guys feel outnumbered, outdone, and the ones struggling, I'd like for Voldemort (OR actually a successor maybe?) to actually be in charge and oppressing the country. No evil hiding in the shadows, but the good guys doing that. like in comics Age of Apocalypse, the good guys have been beaten down completely and are trying to get themselves together to unite against the evil but have to deal with betrayls, good groups are untrusting of each other, each having their own methods and not agreeing with others.
What do you want to keep the same at Now Playing? Everything I didn't mention! *laughs* which is a lot actually.
Why do you want the job? I still like NP. I still want to do right by it's players, yes, I'm not always easy to get along with, and yes, I'm a bitch. I can tell you that's changed a lot. I still have a lot to offer NP and want to continue to offer it, I enjoy working for this community and making it something fun. Plus, I would miss organizing and running contests such as Merlin Medals and Summer Frenzy.
If someone were to initiate a plot device without receiving mod permission, how would you react? How I always do, I usually IM other mods, discuss it with them, I'll also freeze the thread if need be (if it's harsh enough), I tend to call it to attention of others because not everything is always posted to officials sometimes things are approved/spoken about through IM's and it's not known. If it's something believable the players are made aware that their actions can have consequences, and sometimes they will face them IG. if it's something not believable and sits outside the genre then it's brought to officials and discussed and decided on. I don't always agree with the decisions, but I abide by them. I do believe majority rules. If it conflicts with another plot, then I tend to advocate against allowing it in favour of the approved plot.
Former mods:
How long have you been a mod? Quite a bit of time I realised, since end of October/beginning of November of 2005.
How long have you spent on hiatus? Why? I've been on Hiatus a couple of times, usually due to vacations (I took off a month and a bit when I went to Germany December to January) and because of new work. It's hard to count exactly how much time I have been on hiatus, but it usually revolved around being out of country to changing jobs and having to go through training and a change of hours and work loads.
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POLL HAS BEEN REMOVED AS VOTING IS CLOSED. RESULTS ARE AS FOLLOWS:
JULIA - 19 YES
CRYSTAL - 18 YES
LENA - 9 YES
PERRIE - 17 YES
LACEY - 20 YES
JUDI - 20 YES
*Results were calculated by counting the votes made by Now Playing Members. 1 yes vote by default was removed as NPC Journal np_dumbledore made it. Results have been recorded.